Mobile platforms are becoming smaller and smaller, and typically have decreasingly smaller screens and less Input/Output (IO) ports from generation to generation.
Docking stations are commonly used nowadays to extend the IO port array of the mobile platforms, and provide a convenient means for a mobile platform to hook up to a static variety of peripheral devices (“peripherals”), such as displays, monitors, external storage devices, external Hard Disk Drives (HDD), a mouse, keyboards, webcams, communication devices, and the like.
A docking device (also referred to as “docking station”) may typically be placed on a table, while being permanently connected to the peripherals, and the user may connect the mobile platform to the docking station (“dock”) to utilize the peripherals.
When one evaluates the spectrum of existing connectivity options for connecting the docking station to the mobile platform, one can find several connectivity schemes.
One scheme includes connectorized docking based on a pass-through mechanical connector that carries a variety of signals, e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB), Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe), Audio, and the like.
Another scheme includes connectorized docking based on a single cable that carries a particular technology, e.g., USB or Thunderbolt.
Another scheme includes wireless docks, based on wireless technologies, e.g., wireless USB, Wireless-Fidelity (Wi-Fi), Wireless Gigabit (WiGig), and the like.